Tim Swenson Archives - d.trio marketing group

It’s been said that the best camera is the one you have on you. That’s a very true statement, considering that you can’t take a photo unless you have a camera on you. There are a couple easy ways to make photos better and once you understand these you can start to pick better photos for your albums, or your marketing and advertising campaigns.

The rule of thirds is the most important rule to remember. Divide the photo you want to take into three parts, horizontally and vertically. If you have ever taken a photo with an iPhone it will show the grid automatically. Also put your subject off-center, it will make your shot more interesting. So when you’re scrolling through hundreds of potential photos for your next mailing – make sure your image as interesting as possible to draw in the target.

A second thing to remember is to make sure there is contrast. Whether that is color, size, or shape depends on your subject. Below is an example of contrast in size. You’ll see that the person on top of the cliff in the photo provides some perspective into how large the cliff actually is. If you apply this principle to your marketing pieces it can help give your target as much information as possible about what your ad is about with a quick glance.

These are just a couple of ways to improve your photography but the best way is to practice. Start taking photos and you’ll be better at picking out the perfect photo for your next campaign.

Our newest d.trio guy answers a few questions so we can all get to know him a little better:

Q: The ad tagline that best sums up my approach to life is:

A: I don’t think it’s a tagline yet but – “Roll With It”

Q: If I were a top-secret government agent, my code name would be:

A: Saint.

Q: I wish cars could run on:

A: Willpower – Do you really want to get to where you’re going?

Q: The secret theme song playing inside my head is:

A: Sunday NFL Theme Song.

Q: What profession other than marketing would you like to try?

A: Acting. Don’t ask why, because I couldn’t answer.

Q: Which talent would you most like to have?

A: I’d like to be able to play guitar. I’d have fun with that.

Q: What sound do you love?

A: Waves crashing on a beach or a really gritty electric guitar.

Q: What sound do you hate?

A: There are a few sounds that I hate but the one sound that bugs me the most is flying insects. That high-pitched buzz will keep me up until I find the source and eliminate it. A little extreme, but I am only human.

If you know us you know that we have opinions. Well, what you might not know is that we don’t always agree. And sometimes it gets a little heated. After a recent argument over the vital stats of the perfect bloody mary, we decided to give ourselves room to vent in public. Presenting the Cage Match series. An occasional video posting of various d.trio team members squaring off about the little things we find to argue over. We hope you are entertained and if you’d like to give us your opinions go right ahead and comment, or let us know on our Facebook page.

The following blog is written by Tim Swenson, the newest member of the d.trio team. Tim joined us mid-April as an Assistant Account Executive.

A lot of images come to mind when I hear the word “Fresh”. Most of these images are of food.

Personally, I don’t eat out a lot and try to avoid fast food restaurants when I can. A recent article on AdAge.com explains at length why this should worry many chain restaurants (including the heavyweight champion McDonalds). To the dismay of many restaurants it seems to be a trend with millennials. The article states that McDonalds “doesn’t even rank among the demographic’s top 10 restaurant chains.”

I’m one of the 59 million (give or take a few) millennials, and I have some advice for every restaurant. It’s not about whether you’re a chain or one of the best-kept secrets in the city. It’s about keeping it “fresh”.

The first thing we want to be fresh is our food. I recently went out to lunch with some colleagues, and we chose to eat at Chipotle. Once there we started talking about how Chipotle makes a strong effort to only sell the freshest ingredients possible while maintaining high ethical standards in regards to raising animals. We were ultimately happy with our decision, not only because it tasted great, but because it felt morally responsible.

We want another thing to be fresh and that’s the menu. More options will never be a bad thing. This will keep the menu from getting old and will keep us coming back for more. It would be a very demanding task for major companies like McDonalds and Burger King to change their menu but it’s worth looking into for the company’s future.

Don’t just give a more diverse menu though; give a customizable option for when we’re trying to eat a little healthier or when we want to build our own culinary masterpiece. A “Build-Your-Own” or “Á La Carte” option is something consumers crave for in almost everything in life, including meals.

Restaurants need to keep an eye on millennials. Remember that “fresh” can be more than a piece of copy in an ad. It can be a statement.

-Tim Swenson is an assistant account executive at d.trio marketing group